“The White House’s political operation is telling congressional Republicans to hold firm on the government shutdown, citing internal and external polling that show Democrats’ numbers are eroding,” Axios reports.

“Since the shutdown started Oct. 1, Democrats have boasted that public opinion is on their side. But the trend line appears to be shifting, according to internal White House polling data.”

Said one White House aide: “Democrats are taking on water. And we have a higher pain tolerance.”

A new AP-NORC poll shows fairly similar proportions of Americans placing significant onus for the shutdown on Donald Trump at 58%, congressional Republicans at 58% and congressional Democrats at 54%.

“The top four congressional leaders spent Thursday trading accusations about the existence — or lack thereof — of a formal offer to end the government shutdown, now in its 16th day,” Punchbowl News reports.

“The high-level back-and-forth shows that each side — facing growing pressure to do something as the shutdown grinds on — is still more intent on blaming the opposition for the stalemate than finding a solution.”

One interesting takeaway: “Republicans are bending over backwards to speak to Democratic audiences and present themselves as the reasonable party in the standoff.”

Playbook: “And though there are some glimmers of movement around the edges, both parties continue to look pretty dug in — so the shutdown will likely stretch to at least three full weeks when the Senate reconvenes early next week.”